Custom Trading Computers, Inc.

Superior Technology for Superior Results

Tuesday, February 4, 2014

The Engine

There is a need to examine some of the hidden parts of your trading computer
system. This will influence what you should be looking for when researching and
creating the perfect computer for your trading needs.

Motherboard

Chances are that unless you already know a lot about the actual different
hardware components in a computer, you’ll never really need to do research on
motherboards. The motherboard (main board) is the piece of the puzzle that
connects everything together. It is the single most important factor of the
computer, because like the other components, every motherboard is not created
equal. The motherboard needs to be compliant with the other components. Thus
the motherboardshould be the first
component you select. One processor may work on one motherboard but not on
another. And the same is true for the video cards, and RAM.

Processors

The two major processor manufacturers are Intel and AMD. Technology has come
a long way. We now have multi-core processors which are extremely useful for
traders. Multi-core technology is very similar to SMP (Symmetric
Multi-Processor) AKA multi-processor technology in that you have multiple cores
to work with on one single slab of silicon. Multiple -core processors are
extremely useful for multi-tasking, which is why they should be in your scopes
for your trading computer. Intel’s highest end multi-core processor product
line is called the i7 while AMD’s is called the A10. Currently Intel’s i7 is
the highest-end processor, outweighing the AMD A10 in nearly all categories and
benchmarks but comes with a little premium in price.